Summer is just around the corner. Families can look forward to warmer weather, plenty of outdoor activities and, of course, summer holidays! This year, why not make the best of that time off school and spend some time bonding as a family by making a craft or two? Family crafting doesn’t need to be expensive. With a dollop of creativity and a little help from Value Village, your family can while a way a summer’s day making spectacular and FUN crafts without breaking the bank! To help you on your way, we’ve compiled a list of handy craft ideas that ALL families can enjoy…

7 Budget-Friendly Crafts From Value Village

Value Village

1. Splatter T-Shirts

For the budding artist in your family, why not grab an ordinary T-shirt from Value Village and transform it into something new and fabulous? Hang the shirt in the back yard, fill a thin-tipped condiment bottle with fabric paint (or use a brush) and splatter away with the colours of your choice! We recommend practicing your splatter technique on some newspaper first to perfect your craft.

Value Village

2. Tie Blanket/Throw

You won’t need a sewing machine to create this fabric masterpiece! All you need is two rectangular pieces of material cut to the exact same size. Pop in to Value Village and pick up some funky fabric scraps, drapes or linens. When you get them home, lay them flat (stacked one on top of the other), shape them into a rectangle with scissors, cut slits spaced 1 inch apart all the way around the rectangle and then tie the top strips to the bottom strips! Voila!

Value Village

3. Ornamental Vases/Plates/Bowls

All you need a little imagination and some acrylic paints to repurpose a boring, old household item from Value Village into a work of art! Grab a vase, glass, mug, plate or whatever tickles your fancy and use some acrylic paint to make it fine and fancy. And if you can’t quite find what you’re looking for, come back another day! At Value Village, over 6,000 new items arrive daily.

Value Village

4. Summer Cake Topper

Having a party this summer? Why not celebrate with a cake? Bake a beauty and top it with something fun from Value Village! Explore the toy area and see what inspires you to create a scene atop your tasty treat. There’s no limit to the ideas that you might come up with.

Value Village

5. Fabric Streamers/Bunting

Speaking of parties, why not decorate with some fabric streamers or bunting? Using some sturdy string as an anchor, tie kitschy fabric strips sourced from Value Village to create a wild and wonderful banner that will transform your summer get-together into a PARTY! As a twist, try cutting uniform triangles from the fabric and using fabric glue to fix it to itself on the underside.

 

6. Upcycled Clothing

For the budget fashionista at your house, why not get creative and uniquely stylish with an upcycled designer label from Value Village? With upcycling, the only limit is your imagination! Try reshaping a T-shirt into a tank with scissors, tastefully distressing second-hand denim for a more rustic look, or maybe adding graffiti to a clothing canvas of your choice with permanent marker.

Value Village

7. Fill a Jam Jar

Fill a jam jar with the filling of your choosing! Try creating a summery centerpiece with a mason jar filled with fresh flowers, greenery, salt crystals or candles.  Better yet, make use of that plentiful summer fruit by making a batch of your favourite jam or chutney! Jam jars and canning supplies are a common find at Value Village, so you won’t have to break the bank if this is your first kick at canning.

Happy summer, Vancouver families! Don’t forget to use some of that precious time getting crafty, and if all else fails…

MAKE BUBBLES! – HOMEMADE GIANT BUBBLE RECIPE

One of our favourite ways to spend a summer day is to play with bubbles in the backyard. We created our own concoction of household ingredients to make the ultimate giant bubbles and we’d love to share it with you.

Read below for a printable copy of the recipe.

Ingredients:

6 cups water – distilled is recommended but I use tap water and it works fine too.
1/2 cup Dawn dish detergent – it comes in different colours but we like blue!
1/2 cup cornstarch
1 Tbsp baking powder
1 Tbsp glycerine

Instructions:

Mix all the ingredients in a large bowl. Allow your mixture to sit for at least an hour, stirring occasionally. That’s it!

To make a bubble blower, loop a piece of string (we used butcher’s twine) through two plastic straws. You can create handles by sticking chopsticks through ends of the straws. Click on the image below for a printable copy of our Ultimate Giant Bubble Recipe.

We’d love to hear about your best finds at Value Village in the comments below!